Is Gertrude Ederle still alive?
Deceased (1905–2003)
Gertrude Ederle/Living or Deceased
What was Gertrude Ederle known for?
First Woman to Swim Across the English Channel
Gertrude Ederle, the First Woman to Swim Across the English Channel, Dies at 98. Gertrude Ederle, who was called ”America’s best girl” by President Calvin Coolidge in 1926 after she became the first woman to swim across the English Channel, died yesterday at a nursing home in Wyckoff, N.J. She was 98.
What was Gertrude Ederle impact?
In 1926, 19-year-old New Yorker Gertrude Ederle made history by becoming the first woman to swim the English Channel – and in a faster time than the five men who had already achieved the feat.
Why did Gertrude Ederle lose her hearing?
Ederle had a hearing problem since childhood and damaged her hearing during the English Channel swim which caused her eventual deafness. She taught swimming to children at the Lexington School for the Deaf. She never married and lived in New York City with several female friends.
Why is Gertrude Ederle a hero?
American swimmer Gertrude Ederle achieved fame when she competed in the 1924 Olympics and became the first woman to swim across the English Channel in 1926.
What happened to Gertrude Ederle in Germany?
Ederle had poor hearing since childhood due to measles, and by the 1940s she was almost completely deaf. Aside from her time in Vaudeville, she taught swimming to deaf children. She never married and she was living in an old peoples home in 2001. She died on November 30, 2003, in Wyckoff, New Jersey, at the age of 98.
Why did Gertrude Ederle swim the English Channel?
The 18-year-old Ederle hoped to win three Olympic gold medals at the 1924 Paris Games, and was disappointed to receive only one gold in her team event and two bronze medals in her singles events. But while she was abroad, she got an idea for what she wanted to do next: swim the channel between France and England.
Do you know the name Gertrude Ederle?
Do you know the name Gertrude Ederle? Born in New York City, Ederle won three swimming medals at the Olympic Games in 1924. However, her biggest fame came two years later. On August 6, 1926, Ederle became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
How old was Gertrude Ederle when she died?
Ederle damaged her hearing during the Channel swim, and went on to spend much of her adult life teaching deaf children in New York City to swim. She died in 2003 at the age of 98. READ MORE: The First Woman to Swim the English Channel Beat the Men’s Record by Two Hours
How long did Gertrude Ederle Swim the English Channel?
Only five men had been able to swim the English Channel before Ederle. The best time had been 16 hours, 33 minutes by Enrique Tiraboschi. Ederle walked up the beach at Kingsdown, England, after 14 hours and 34 minutes.
What did Gertrude Ederle do in the Olympics?
Gertrude Ederle was born in New York City on October 23, 1905. She was a champion swimmer by her late teen years, and she competed in the 1924 Olympics.
How did Gertrude Ederle become a deaf teacher?
A childhood bout with measles and damage to her eardrums during the Channel swim left her entirely deaf by the 1940s. Ederle spent much of her later life teaching children to swim at the Lexington School for the Deaf in New York.